Back in November, Donald Trump released Our Journey Together to widespread mockery in the mainstream press. The primary criticism was that rather than the typical post-presidential memoir, Trump put out a coffee-table book with some surprisingly nasty handwritten captions. But people were also appalled by the book’s sky-high price tag: $74.99 or $229.99 for a signed edition.
Now Trump devotees are in for even more sticker shock. Basic copies of the book are still available at the original price, but the $229.99 signed edition is no longer listed on the website of Winning Team Publishing (a new venture co-founded by Donald Trump Jr. and GOP operative Sergio Gor). Instead, signed copies are only available as part of the “Special Edition (Signed Copy) Bundle Pack,” which Trump and Don Jr. started promoting on social media earlier this week.
One thing Trump neglected to mention in his Truth Social post: the special-edition bundle costs nearly $1,000. Why? Well, the short answer, obviously, is that Trump is not one to pass up a good moneymaking scheme. But let’s break down exactly what buyers are getting for their $999.
A copy of Our Journey Together that looks leather bound but probably isn’t.
In a January appearance on Lou Dobbs’s podcast, Trump bragged that Our Journey Together had sold out its initial run of 240,000 copies. When compared to other presidents’ book sales this isn’t impressive at all, but Trump claimed that he ran into supply-chain issues.
“The publisher, the printer, who is one of the biggest in the country, I think he said he has eight plants, he said, ‘Well, we have one problem: We can’t get paper. We can’t get ink. We can’t get glue. We can’t get leather for the covers,’” he said.
This remark was highly confusing, as it appears no animals were harmed in the making of the original edition on Our Journey Together. And while the “special edition” looks like it might be leather bound, I’m going to bet that it’s some kind of plastic imitation. A genuine leather cover seems like it would be a key selling point, and yet the word “leather” does not appear anywhere in the description. Here’s what Winning Team Publishing says about the “special edition” book:
Get your HAND SIGNED copy of Our Journey Together, a SPECIAL EDITION. Autographed by President Donald J. Trump, this photo book is sure to become a family treasure!
This SPECIAL EDITION features several new photos as well as President Trump’s signature inside the book, not on a bookplate! Very few copies remain!
Without more detail on what the cover is made of, I can’t assess whether the bundle’s 435 percent mark up is justified — particularly because my only expertise in rare books comes from watching three seasons of Netflix’s You. But I will note that Barnes & Noble’s “collectible edition” of The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh, featuring “elegant bonded-leather binding, distinctive gilt edging, decorative endpapers, and a colorful ribbon bookmark” costs only one penny more than the regular hardcover edition; so the leather-ish Our Journey Together cover may not cost hundreds of dollars to produce.
As for the other perks, the previous price structure suggests Trump’s signature only adds $155 to the value of the book. And as a Star Wars enthusiast, I have to warn Trump fans that sometimes new “special edition” content isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
A signed copy of an old Don Jr. book.
The “special edition” bundle also includes a signed copy of Liberal Privilege: Joe Biden and the Democrats’ Defense of the Indefensible by Donald Trump Jr. You can get a signed copy for as low as $44.99 on eBay and an unsigned copy for $29.99 on Winning Team Publishing’s website. (Also available: a $199 copy of Our Journey Together signed by Don Jr., who did not author the book.)
At first glance, it seems like Liberal Privilege might break some big news about Trump’s plans for 2024. The description states:
Read about the countless liberal scandals, years of entrenched racism in the democrat party and decades of failed polices that will paint a stark picture of LIBERAL PRIVILEGE.
As President Donald J. Trump seeks a second term based on real accomplishments, learn about the facts the media refuses to cover.
But upon further investigation, this book was first published in August 28, 2020. Winning Team Publishing didn’t update the blurb to clarify that this book is almost two years old, and Trump’s first attempt to secure a second term failed.
A MAGA hat.
A “classic MAGA hat” retails for $30 on the website for Trump’s Save America Joint Fundraising Committee, and I am going to bet that anyone considering shelling out $999 on the special edition of his cash-grab coffee-table book already owns one. Personally, I would have sweetened the bundle with the $29.99 Our Journey Together coffee mug instead. But I’ve never helped my dad sell a few hundred thousand picture books (a mere fraction of what other presidential books sell on day one) so what do I know?
